Surgery Day: July 13, 2015

Today is the day that the Lord has made! I will be glad and rejoice in it! It's surgery day for our Princess Gabriella. Her surgery team just rounded and said that her blood counts were back up some and that was a positive factor! She is on the schedule for surgery around noon. We are praying that they are able to take out the entire mass and kidney. We are praying that she has courage and a peace surrounding her that only our Lord can give! We are praying that it is not cancer!! We are praying that God is glorified in all of this and that people see Him through us and through this trial!!! Please remember our baby today!
~Originally posted on Facebook~

There are no words to describe the fear you have when your 3 year old little girl has to under go major surgery!! It is a fear that surrounds you and you feel as if you might suffocate! David and I were scared and we were concerned about her but an amazing feeling of peace surrounded us on this Monday morning. We were originally scheduled to have surgery around 1:00pm. We had our favorite nurse, Jessica, on the floor with us that day and we knew that she would help us through it all. We tried to make the day as normal as you could in the hospital! Family started arriving and we decided to venture out to the large family waiting room and enjoy some time with her.

As time got closer and closer to noon I started to feel a little more anxious. I asked our nurse if we needed to stay in our room so we would know when it was time to go and she said she would come and get us from the waiting room when she got the call. That relaxed me a little more but every time that doors opened I was looking to see if it was Jessica walking through them. Finally the time came, I picked Gabriella up and walked back to our room. We undressed her and wiped her down with the special wipes that you use before surgery. We then put her in a hospital gown and sat and held her. After about 10 minutes I realized they weren't coming as fast as they said they were so I asked Jessica if I could take G out to tell her family that she would see them later?! Of course, amazing Jessica said that was fine so we did. She was able to kiss and hug everyone that had made it there already and to tell them she loved them.

Another 30 minutes past and while I sat in the recliner holding G she fell asleep. It was a welcome blessing. She had not had anything to eat or drink since midnight and our poor dear was starving!! She was thinking of anything and everything that she would eat if just given the chance! =(  After an hour of waiting, Jessica came in and said that the surgery escort was finally here! We walked out of our room and found her. G was still pretty much asleep and we just decided we would carry her downstairs. We went into Pre-Op and got acquainted with the nurse that would take care of her in her surgery room, met anesthesia, and talked to her surgeon. Then it was time for her to go back. The nurse took her from me and G cried for just a second and then over the nurse's shoulder raised up her little hand to wave at us! Bless my baby!!!

We were then sent out to the surgery waiting room and were greeted by lots of family and friends. My sweet cousin, Tabitha, was there and she was such a comfort. My parents, and brother, Tabitha's dad (my dad's brother), our Pastor, and David's dad and step-mom were all there.

We past the time by listening to our Pastor's crazy stories of when he and David were younger and some of their crazy adventures that they went on. It helped to laugh and pass the time! After a while I just sat and read my Bible and concentrated on God's word. David was praying silently and I was finding comfort in strength through scripture.

After close to 3 hours we got the call that she was finished with surgery and did great!! We met with her surgeon who said that they were able to take out the tumor, kidney, and the ureter. All was a success and now we just waited for the results of the pathology reports that we would hopefully get before the end of the week.

We got to see her after about an hour in recovery and she was wanting a cup of juice! =) Of course she couldn't have anything yet and that was hard to explain. We got back up to her room and got her settled in her bed. She slept the majority of the rest of the night and only woke a few times during the night and I had her nurses give her pain meds when we woke.

We praise God that He brought our princess through the surgery without any complications! We praise Him because they were able to remove the entire mass without having to just do a biopsy and cut her open again at a later date! We praise Him that she didn't have any nausea after the surgery and that her pain was well controlled! We praise Him because He never left us in the dark without hope of rescue and comfort!! He never leaves us nor forsakes us!!! David and I knew that we couldn't lean on ourselves to get us through this. We had to lean on God and his peace that only He gives!